Last week, I decided to use November and its NaNoWriMo as an excuse to challenge myself to publish some writing every day. Today is day 9 and this is my 9th blog post this month. I can feel my energy and motivation starting to flag.
Iβm reminded of this article I read a few days back (and which, sadly, I canβt find right now) , by a NaNoWriMo veteran, where she talked about understanding and being prepared for what she called βthe rhythmβ of the challenge. We start energized, but about 10 days in or so things start to look worse β weβre tired and maybe even really disliking our writing. I am at the point where I can feel the doubts creeping in: βis this any good?β βwhatβs the point of doing this?β.
But Iβm trying to push through, so I thought I would share some of the tactics Iβm using to keep myself chugging along. These are some of the weapons in my inventory, perhaps some of them will work for you.
Note to self: +10 motivation and +5 energy
When this all started, I knew that maintaining momentum would be hard. So I wrote down a note for myself with detailing why I had decided to take up the challenge. Now, when I start thinking I should give up, I go and read my note and see if those motivations still hold. Turns out, they do. (It is interesting to note that some days some of my motives resonate more than others, and on the next day it will be the other way around. So it helps to have more than one reason.)
A buddy or two: +20 accountability and +10 energy
I shared my intention to write every day with some of my friends, and with my partner. Their encouragement and affirmation is very helpful. Yesterday I found myself saying βI havenβt written yet, I think maybe Iβll skip todayβ, but someone reminded me that it is about keeping momentum, not about producing something perfect. And that was enough to get me to write just one day more.
A timer with a short interval: +15 energy
Iβve been setting myself a 25-minute timer, calling it a βwriting sprintβ and typing away without editing. Iβm willing to commit to 25 minutes to most things; 25 minutes doesnβt feel so hard. Once Iβve started, the energy and the words start flowing. Like now. (I wrote about my experiments working with a timer here.)
Light at the end of the tunnel: +20 motivation
Iβm leaving on a trip tomorrow evening. Iβll be away for most of the week at a retreat center. I tell myself that, if it doesnβt feel right, I donβt need to be publishing anything while Iβm on retreat. The retreat itself is about introspective writing, so I know Iβll be writing anyway (just not necessarily publishing). I can decide once Iβm back if I want to pick up the challenge again or not. It helps to know that it is just a couple more days, that this daily challenge is not forever.
Community: +15 energy and +20 joy
One unexpected thing thatβs been really helpful is the engagement of the dev.to community (where Iβve been cross-posting my writing). My original intent was to reach a broader audience (as far as I know, only my brother-in-law reads my blog; thanks Abe!). But the response on dev.to has been very supportive. Just having one or two thoughtful comments on a post make me feel like it is worthwhile to do this. (It is also, frankly, a little scary! Who am I to be having Opinions in Public? I might be wrong!) The responses have also helped me keep the conversation going, thinking and writing about more topics.
Originally published on https://anaulin.org/blog/.
Top comments (2)
This is so true, not just applicable to writing, but pretty much anything you want to achieve, stay disciplined and consistent. Great article ππ»ππ»
A friend of mine showed me this site (Music to code by) mtcb.pwop.com , it also employs the Pomodoro Technique. en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Pomodoro_Tec...